Bayonetta will arrive in October alongside its Wii U-exclusive sequel — Bayonetta 2. Included as a free extra in North America and available in select bundles or separately on the eShop in Europe, it'll give Nintendo gamers all of the context and lore they need before jumping into the new release.

Naturally, the Digital Foundry team at Eurogamer has had a look at the Wii U port of the original in comparison to the Xbox 360 iteration; the PS3 version barely features as it is a notoriously bad version of the game. In general the Wii U version, as should be the case, performs well; there are subtle differences in visuals and use of the hardware that, overall, seem to favour the Nintendo system's iteration.

In general, the visuals between 360 and Wii U are very close, but we did run across one minor difference. Light bloom is used extensively on Xbox 360 and this appears to have been slightly pared back on Wii U. You can observe the difference in the sky just outside the train station where the effect is much stronger on 360. In addition, white levels are clipped on Xbox 360 at points leading to an over-exposed look in certain cases. In some sequences this does give the impression of punchier, higher contrast visuals on Xbox 360 but it's ultimately not something that stands out throughout a run of play.

On the flip-side, shadow quality sees a nice boost on Wii U. The hard-edged, chunky shadows present in the original versions look much cleaner on Wii U. While the resolution isn't noticeably increased, the shadows now appear much softer and less harsh. Water reflections are also subtly different on Wii U with reflections appearing much stronger than the 360's showing.

With multi-platform titles, the Wii U has often struggled with lengthy load times but, thankfully, this isn't a problem with Bayonetta. In fact, the Wii U version of the game loads faster than the other two versions, even with the originals installed to the hard drive. Most loading sequences take between seven to eight seconds on Wii U while 360 requires a few extra seconds and PS3 lags behind that. Of course, we were only provided download codes so we could only test the game running from a USB stick. It may be interesting to see how the game fares running from a disc.

In conclusion, the assessment is that Bayonetta on Wii U is possibly the best-performing console release from Platinum Games yet, and joins a small list of high quality ports that have utilised the hardware well.

Taking the spread of games released by Platinum into account, it could be argued that the Wii U version of the original Bayonetta is the fastest-performing console game released by the studio to date, and in that sense it's a bit disappointing that the sequel fails to match the performance level set by its predecessor. While the massive increase in set-piece complexity in Bayonetta 2 is certainly exciting, it definitely comes at a cost. In that sense it almost feels like the original Bayonetta is the more finely tuned experience.

Alongside the likes of Need for Speed: Most Wanted, Bayonetta stands out as one of the best ports available on the Wii U. It's clear that a lot of time and effort was poured into this release in order to preserve and in places improve upon the original experience. While it's not dramatically superior to the original Xbox 360 version, we'd have to give it the nod as the definitive version of the game. The elimination of screen-tear, faster loading, and solid performance levels make a huge difference. Whether you've played the original release or not, this is a great way to experience Bayonetta. The fact that it comes packed in with most versions of Bayonetta 2 makes it one heck of a bonus.

If you want all of the nitty gritty detail check out the full article, while you can also read the recommendation in our Bayonetta review.

@ThomasBW84 Sorry Tom, just to clarify, is it the cost of both Bayo1+2 in North America equivalent to one 'standard AAA' release there? But more than one in Europe? Have you guys listed the prices for both regions anywhere? Apologies if so, must've missed it.

Cant wait for this game! So glad Amazon made up for their pre-order mistake by giving the first game free

I really hope this game sells far better here in the West than it has in Japan so far. I can't bare to think of the response from the trolls if it doesn't. And Nintendo needs this game to prove that they can cater to a mature audience.

I don't get why people think 8 is a mediocre score. It means the game is very good with minor flaws in the eyes of the reviewer. Many games, movies, books will fall into this category (very good, but not stellar) and still provide solid, enjoyable and great experiences. Nines and tens are for masterpieces/near masterpieces.

@FragRed Yeah, I've been noticing this as well. In my experience, when a game is generally received with scores that go from 7 to 9, it usually means that you will enjoy it if you like the genre and maybe even personally score it higher. Anyway.

80% is an A, and can be a Distinction in university. Nothing wrong with 8/10 or 4 stars.But then again, when people rate CoD the same or higher, it confuses people, as who wants to buy something worse than CoD?

i dont think there will be any performance difference gameplay wise between usb and optical. i have digital MK8 and its not like i get a different experience from other users. the usb is probably throttled back, and its only version two.

@MadAdam81 80% is an A? Are you talking school grades? That's a low B/high C grade at the schools I've been to, and 90% and up is an A. Were my schools strict or were yours easy?

Now I wonder if people look at game scores like school grades: 90-100% is an A, 80-90% is a B, 70-80% is a C and anything below that is a failure. You'd think a 7 is a good score from 1-10, but if people look at it as a C grade then they might think that's a bad score...

Digital Foundry notices a bunch of crap most people don't care about anyway. I guess it's good it "runs better" on Wii U. Regardless, I can still have fun with the game even if the sequel isn't "selling well" in Japan (which it is selling better than most are acting like it is). It needs to be October 24th right now.

I have to say, Digital Foundry's comparison video makes it seem like the colors are slightly more muted in the Wii U version, particularly with the reds looking more blue-ish. The addition of proper V-sync makes me forgive that, though.

@Dezzy Yeah... you could focus on that, OR you could look at it as we (or rather: developers & publishers) should and take this as an excellent example of the fact that good ports are indeed possible on Wii U instead of all the buggy, handicapped sh** we've been getting from other companies.

Complaining or being sarcastic is always easier than looking for the positives...

Honestly i dont care about this "which version is better" nonsense…i play games to have fun. This and Bayonetta 2 are my most anticipated games of the year and its a day 1 buy for me! #OPERATIONPLATINUM

So glad to know the Wii U version is now the definite version of the original Bayonetta. Even just by the fact that they eliminated screen tearing it should be a total win. Screen tearing is the worst, I hate it more than framedrops to be honest. Hurry the hell up, oct 24th! Me wants to play dis.

After having an absolute blast playing the most recent Devil May Cry, I'm really itching for another hardcore action title and I think this is the one to bring the satisfaction of chaining together big combos. Looking forward to getting it in the future!

@ArtwarkThe "word that can replace the number" is the text in the review, nobody who complains about a score reads it... or at least no one reasonable will complain about arbitrary numbers or indications at the end of a review when the reviewer tells us how it is and it turns out to be worth a buy/miss.

I guess a "Worth a buy", "Worth a rent", "Worth missing out on" may be more direct, but those don't drive up traffic, get them onto Metacritic/Gamerankings (which as awful as they are - still are important for sites getting exposure) and change much at all if readers are ignorant.

38K is a "a few thousands of copies" in the first week (well two days, but week)? Sure...

@KillScottKillI get that feeling as well when anyone says that Famitsu are harsh, their highest scored games at 39 or 40/40 include some real paragons of design, but also an anime licensed fighting games with microtransactions and poor balance and Final Fantasy XIII.

Just goes to show that scores alone aren't helpful and even more crazy... well it is to be expected but different writers have different tastes or personal feelings on scores (on top of the different sites having different feelings). I recall seeing a GameSpot or IGN livechat where the staff were disagreeing at large with a fellow writer responsible for a review.

If I've never played Bayonetta before should I play Bayo 1 or Bayo 2 first? These are not usually my kind of games & I'm afraid if I play Bayo 1 first that I'll get jaded by the time I get to Bayo 2. But I wonder if I'll have a better experience for 2 story-wise if I've played 1 previously. Anyone have any thoughts?

Sounds weird that you are willing to buy a game if it is not your kind and are already talking about getting jaded. Isn't there a way for you to try the first game (via a friend, rental, etc) to see if you will like it? In any case, if you get Bayo 2 start with the first one, as you don't even have to hunt it down.

@snooxBayo 1 first. I haven't played either one and next to no one here has played or seen much of Bayo 2 (Japanese importers of Wii U or playthrough watchers), but playing in order will let you recognise all of the improvements or changes that Bayo 2 makes and any nods to the prior game.

If you want to try out a game with technical action and fantastic design, this should be your cup of tea. It is challenging, has a high skill ceiling and makes you work for unlocks even if it gives you plenty to do, but it is a great pick.

If you have a Wii U, you should look into The Wonderful 101 as well. It has the same director as Bayo 1 (Kamiya is still supervising Bayo 2) and a lot of shared design choices with Bayonetta as well as Devil May Cry (same director), Okami (same director) and Viewtiful Joe (same director)

@thelastgogeta Hmmm im not sure if that response was meant for me since i never made mention of any numbers but incase that ignorance was directed at me allow me to retort…

Bayo 1 in its 1st week (to which it was available for 4 DAYS) sold in Japan 135K on the PS3 which had an install base of a little over 4 million and TOTAL lifetime sales of 210K.Bayo 1 in its 1st week ( to which it was ALSO available for 4 days) sold in Japan 64K on X360 which had an install base of around 1 million and with TOTAL lifetime sales of 90K.

Now Bayo2 in its first week ( to which it was available for 1 DAY…yup just 1 day) sold in Japan 38K on the WiiU which has an install base of 1.9 million or that it sold about 68% of its initial shipment.

Hmmm do u also realize that Platinum games usually sell better on the West than in their own Japan? Why dont we wait judging Bayo2 until the end of this year or better yet when its LIFETIME sales are out? Did u realize that Bayo2 in JAPAN out sold Infamous 2nd son 36K? But that shouldnt matter b/c it sells well in the West right?

I shall say what ive always said play video games to have fun period. Dont fall for these console war shenanigans. Sure we all have our preferences but when u worry about sales numbers and reviews instead of the actual games enjoyment my friend ur not really a gamer. If i misunderstood ur response i apologize in advance and shall go finish playing Hyrule Warriors.

@rjejr my friend also said that after the patch the PS3 version of Bayo1 was better just the loading times sucked but still a game not to be missed

@sinalefa sometimes my friend i question even responding to some comments but knowledge is power and you seem to know this game very well so educate us who are uninitiated LOL im not ashamed to ask for help if i need it

@WanderingPB Yeah, you are correct I intended it for @kereke12 instead since he literally said "Yet Bayonetta sold only a few thousands of copies in Japan."

I generally agree to an extent since I care a lot more about good games existing and good games being available than console warfare, but the sales of Bayonetta 2 aren't going to pick up much on the "second week/first full week" since most sales tend to be on the first day/week (look at your life time sales total and compare them to the first week) anyway and it will be overshadowed by over a dozen games next week which release for the first time when it had last week to itself (New games wise).

The grading system fluctuates considerably even within the same country. Look at any two universities (even within the same school it can be different) and you can see that GPA can be calculated quite differently. This is especially noticeable for schools that don't have "+" and "-" especially in the example you provided.

Take Harvard as an example. Their science department does not have an A+ grade (they stop at A) but have "-" and "+" for pretty much any other grade level. Or taken from the same university, their business school doesn't use letters at all or set "grade" percentage ranges. Instead, they base their scores on the percentage of students that should be achieving each level of excellence they have set out.

@thelastgogeta no worries my friend i wasnt exactly sure hence the manner of my response. I agree Bayo2 wont sell incredibly well in Japan but i also dont understand how sum people especially so called "fans" of the series are celebrating its "failure" when the 1st title didnt fair well in Japan to begin with…besides this game is going to be great to play and its unfortunate that peoples personal bias and ignorance will hold them back from enjoying this incredible game jus like W101. Enjoy Senran kagura 2 i shall enjoy Cia in Hyrule Warriors high five very nice (Borat voice)

@Crimzonlogic Your schools weren't stricter, and his weren't easier. As someone else said, it depends on the grading format of the school. By the grading system you've listed, it seems you don't have A*. Can't speak for the other guy, but my school did. So it would be:
90+% A*
80-89% A
70-79% B
And so on.
So while an A grade in your schools is higher then A grades in mine (and maybe his) schools, we would be aware of this. Because we would know we hadn't achieved top grades with A grade as top for us is A*. While you would know you got the highest grade because A grade is given for top marks.

Anyway, enough about school grades hahaha!! The point he's trying to make is there is nothing wrong with 80%. It's a very respectable score and if you saw a game with that score, you'd definitely want to know more about it (if you already didn't).

For me personally anyway, if a game is under 60%, it puts me off. 60-70 is we'll see. 80+ is a must have as long as the game actually appealed to me in the first place. Don't just buy every game that's 80% of course, hahaha!!

Not realoy fair as this is a port and not even a directors cut. So it does what it is supsed to do in that its a port of a 5yr old game that looks and runs slightly better than its previous best version.

If U want to see how much better the WiiU can perform over x360 than look at Bayo2 which looks stunning, runs [email protected] and has effects you couldn't touch on a x360. Lets remember this is a freebie so a slightly better port is all we could ask for.

@Artwark@Interneto An 8 is a good score i'm not disputing that at all. I don't much care for scores to be honest i glean the information i need from the actual content of reviews. Since NL often have long reviews they are a good source of said information which is why i read them. That said Bayonetta is one of the best action games ever, if you are going to give it an arbitrary score it deserves a higher score than 8 imo.

My issue is actually with the review itself and (some) reviews in general, they lack consistency and often have mis-information and conjecture (The Hyrule Warriors review is a good example of this). For example Mega Man also received an 8 but didn't lose marks because of its age, this review was published about the same time. Most times I just ignore it but once in a while I make a comment.

@snooxWell the full game of The Wonderful 101 gives you a good but quick introduction in the mechanics of the game as well as offering two easier difficulties from the get go, though I recommend in advance that you buy the block and dodge moves.

You can learn and unlock everything little by little in both Bayonetta and The Wonderful 101 (even learning in failure or after tons of playthroughs) since they share a lot in common. Just because the camera here looks more traditional, it doesn't mean it won't be just as merciless.

That said, jump on Bayonetta 1 + 2 and give TW101 a look for cheap while being patient and you'll be surprised how well it clicks.

@unrandomsam"in this day and age there should be no load times at all"This is a very unrealistic expectation seeing as game developers will continue to push the hardware they have to it's max. Actually how on earth is a video game supposed to do anything if it doesn't load anything first?

Porting games to wii u is not merely possible, but as this game demonstrates, can even look better! Improved specs won't be the only advantage visible by nerding out on specs. Improvements to ports to wii u are also available made possible by the gamepad.

I don't mean to sound like a troll here because this all sounds really great, but saying "alongside the likes of Need for Speed: Most Wanted, Bayonetta stands out as one of the best ports available on the Wii U" is not a compliment. I have never had a game freeze on me the way Need for Speed did. It easily crashed on me 15 times in 30 hours of gameplay. It once froze on me 4 times in 5 minutes. My frustration with Most Wanted U, coupled with the fact that I just really wanted to play an HD Need for Speed game, is what made me go out and buy a PS3, which at the time was my first ever non-Nintendo console.

I think it's great that the Wii U is getting such a great exclusive like Bayonetta, but nothing ticks me off more than anybody praising Need for Speed: Most Wanted U. That game simply did not work.

@AJWolfTill Its a choice. The possibility exists. (Use an SSD). Modern Arcade games don't have them. (There are some with lesser specs than the PS4/Xbone that look as good). It affects the enjoyment of the game for me. (More than whether every single texture that I don't even notice is different.)

@Diddy_kong I would take the whole article with a huge pinch of salt. I played both Bayonetta and Bayonetta 2 all the way through and Bayonetta one is much slower and suffers far more from dips in frame rate than bayonetta 2. The test they did to prove bayonetta on Xbox was smoother than bayonetta 2 was based on just a very complex intro sequence. In game is a different story. Agree about most wanted u.. It is a piece of sh9t.

@URAmk2 I must have been more tired than usual, oops. 85% is a A- in many schools in Australia, 80% a B+. 90% is an A, 95% an A+ and 100% an A++ - don't know if it has changed in SA since I finished school 15 years ago.Still, it's a good mark and no-one would refuse to see a movie that only got 4 stars because it didn't get 4 and a half.

@Diddy_kong Ouch, I never had any problems with it, I had no idea any such problems existed.In that case, ignoring any bugs from Most Wanted U, Bayonetta is the next best Wii U port, or possibly it's equal in the extra stuff added in (I would have to compare a list of extra work done for the port) and could be it's superior if there are no bugs at all.

@AJWolfTill Unless everything is on a SSD drive and you have as much RAM as the size of all the programs you are running.And considering SSD's have such a low space and very low amount of times data can be rewritten on it, you would be spending a huge amount of money on it.

@larry_koopa Are you sure your Need for Speed: Most Wanted U disc isn't scratched/dirty? I've had my copy since day one and I haven't once experienced any freezing. I think you might have a disc problem (of course I am one of the few gamers who actually puts their discs in the proper cases when changing). Just a suggestion.